Pilar Fernandez Santos

Tears of Joy When do we cry? What happens to our bodies when we are overwhelmed by strong emotions? I found the work of photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher during my research. She portrayed tears from different people (and different emotions) under the microscope. The images were as intriguing as they were beautiful. Tears of joy became the central focus of my fabric treatments. I used silk paint, embroidery and top stitching to recreate the plant-like appearance of those tears. Taking things further, I decided to think about the places in the world where I felt overwhelmed by extreme feelings of joy. This created a shape in the map that served as both an inspiration for the print development and the main pattern shape. The challenge was to use the whole shape to create a garment that represents the intimate merging of my tears of joy and their locations. The final garment is a fine taffeta sleeveless dress that changes and creases with each step. The silhouette is the product of six pattern pieces: two at the front and four at the back. The dress is accompanied by a neck piece/necklace in rounded shapes that represents the tears of joy themselves. Silk painting, embroidery and beading adorn the piece. The two garments combined create an allegory of my trips around the world and represent the joy I felt standing amid some of the world's most beautiful wonders.  See more on issuu .